Ever wondered why the legendary Scott Steiner, known for his dominance in WCW, faced a challenging stint in WWE? Join us as we unravel the untold story behind Scott Steiner's struggles in the world of sports entertainment!
In this video, we'll delve into the various factors that contributed to Scott Steiner's perceived failure in WWE. From his high-profile debut to his infamous run, we'll analyze the key moments and decisions that might have hindered his success in the grandest stage of them all.
What are your thoughts on Scott Steiner's WWE run? Share your opinions and favorite moments in the comments section below! Let's engage in a lively discussion about one of wrestling's most enigmatic figures.
You can also visit our site: https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe
#ScottSteiner #TripleH #WWE #Wrestling #Sportskeeda
In this video, we'll delve into the various factors that contributed to Scott Steiner's perceived failure in WWE. From his high-profile debut to his infamous run, we'll analyze the key moments and decisions that might have hindered his success in the grandest stage of them all.
What are your thoughts on Scott Steiner's WWE run? Share your opinions and favorite moments in the comments section below! Let's engage in a lively discussion about one of wrestling's most enigmatic figures.
You can also visit our site: https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe
#ScottSteiner #TripleH #WWE #Wrestling #Sportskeeda
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SportsTranscript
00:00 Scott Steiner, what's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Big Poppa
00:07 Pump?
00:08 Is it all of the freaks that were in tow with him?
00:11 Is it the big crazy tattoo on the chest?
00:15 What is it about Big Poppa Pump that you think of when he comes to mind?
00:21 Let us know in the comments below.
00:24 It's Sportskeeda Wrestling.
00:26 Is it the wacky, insane promos that were just out there but also very entertaining?
00:32 Or was it the unfortunate WWE run in 2003 that ended in just unfortunate disaster?
00:40 Scott Steiner had a lot of success in his wrestling career and even his first run in
00:46 WWE saw him become a two-time tag team champion with his brother Rick, but it was his time
00:53 in WCW when he finally became a well-deserved single star.
00:59 Coming out of WCW, Big Poppa Pump was his real moniker and character.
01:06 Truly just muscles to the gills before you could get your fills was him coming into WCW
01:15 after the fall of WCW but the continued rise of WWE.
01:20 He was the kind of guy who could walk up to a man, steal his girlfriend knowing that nobody
01:26 could do anything about it because she just became one of his freaks.
01:32 Steiner was featured heavily at the tail end of WCW and when he got bought out by WWE,
01:38 many thought that he was a surefire lock to make the jump over to the bigger company and
01:45 maybe be featured but that just simply wasn't the case due to a bunch of contractual reasons.
01:52 We hear a lot about names like Sting, Goldberg and Hulk Hogan were highly anticipated signings
01:58 for WWE in the buyout of WCW, but one that most had forgotten was Steiner.
02:03 It seemed inevitable that Big Poppa Pump was going to return to wrestling television and
02:10 when he did, it was actually in a much bigger way than people expected.
02:16 Scott Steiner came into WWE with some physical issues but he still looked like Scott Steiner.
02:22 WWE signed him knowing that this was the case rather than giving him some time off to maybe
02:28 get surgery or recover from these issues so he could have a better physical run, thus
02:35 they thrust him right into the spotlight.
02:38 The contract itself reportedly was fairly lucrative to Steiner so it made it hard for
02:43 him to turn it down.
02:45 It was Survivor Series 2002 when Steiner made his return to WWE after an 8 year hiatus and
02:52 he was slotted in a pretty good position.
02:54 He quickly became the central figure of WWE television at the end of 2002 becoming the
03:00 hottest free agent and having chosen as being the guy to be pivoted between Eric Bischoff's
03:07 Raw and Stephanie McMahon's Smackdown.
03:10 Oh, and he was also booked as a babyface, a fan favorite, the polar opposite of what
03:17 made him a very easy to boo heel and villain in WCW.
03:22 And eventually he chose Monday Night Raw and guess what they did?
03:26 They put him right up there at the top with then world champion Scott Steiner when maybe
03:31 his body may or may not have been ready for it.
03:35 Mind you, this was in the middle of the "reign of terror" that some on the internet have
03:39 called it of Triple H at the time.
03:42 Was he truly showing, over 20 years ago, the influence he would have over his own creative
03:48 direction as the top guy in WWE?
03:52 That's to be debated, but what isn't to be debated is whether or not Big Papa Pump went
03:57 pop when he made it into WWE.
04:00 The problem with the feud wasn't that it was the fact that neither Scott Steiner nor
04:05 Triple H was in the tip-top condition, both of them dealing with some type of physical
04:10 issues.
04:11 Steiner found himself in the losing battle of the 2003 Royal Rumble, along with 29 other
04:18 guys.
04:19 The feud itself was alright and entertaining to some extent, most famously remembered for
04:24 the "Pose Off" segment on Monday Night Raw.
04:27 That's right, remember how we mentioned Steiner's rather serious injury?
04:32 He wasn't alone, even Triple H was recovering from a partially torn quadricep.
04:37 Following his nearly 40-minute war against Shawn Michaels at the Armageddon pay-per-view
04:43 in 2002 in late December, he was quoted as saying, "I guess it came out alright, but
04:49 I didn't feel like I was able to give it my best.
04:52 I was in a lot of pain, and I could barely move it.
04:55 I could hardly run.
04:56 I couldn't jump."
04:57 And guess who had the blame for the Royal Rumble mistake?
05:01 Wink wink, it wasn't Triple H. Yeah, they put it all on Scott Steiner.
05:06 It was kind of like, "Oh, Scotty had a bad match against Triple H in the main event,
05:10 so he doesn't have what Scotty had that we thought he had."
05:15 Lance Storm seemed to confirm as much, stating in an interview that Steiner was made to be
05:21 the scapegoat in the entire situation.
05:24 He stated that Steiner went on to have good matches against him and even Chris Jericho
05:30 as proof that he wasn't just some guy who was "only good in WCW."
05:36 Some would argue that Steiner was past his physical prime, but at that point, could you
05:40 tell?
05:41 This guy was still belly to belly suplexing people like it wasn't anyone else's business
05:46 but his own.
05:48 Once the Rumble match between Triple H and Steiner ended in a DQ, it set up a rematch
05:53 at No Way Out, a pay-per-view following the month afterwards, where Triple H and Steiner
06:00 got away in good form with another big flop of a match.
06:05 But the big question that we still have, 20 years later, is if Scott Steiner was an established
06:12 villain, an established star, and a natural one at that, why on earth was he made to be
06:19 a fan favorite?
06:21 Yes, we all want to holler if he tells us to holler, but we still want to boo him against
06:27 a formidable fan favorite, and maybe he's just a guy we enjoy, I don't know, channing
06:33 along with but not exactly cheering to win.
06:37 This was one of only several questions regarding the somewhat downturn in booking that Scott
06:43 Steiner got when he made it to WWE, and we're just three months into his WWE return, but
06:49 maybe it was just the wrong time, the wrong place, and the wrong guy in Scott Steiner.
06:55 The defeats at the hands of Triple H hurt him in a big way, he wasn't instantly relegated
07:00 to being in the mid card, but he felt less than, really soon, within the ranks of the
07:07 WWE.
07:08 The most significant part of his year was the storyline with Test and Stacey Keebler,
07:14 where he and Test went from being an on and off again tag team partnership, to fighting
07:19 each other for the love of Stacey Keebler and her managerial services.
07:25 When he eventually did turn completely heel, completely villainous later that year, it
07:32 was maybe a little too late.
07:34 His last match was at the 2004 Royal Rumble, when he was never seen in WWE for nearly two
07:41 decades after.
07:43 And after that, my friends, is how WWE wasted the immense potential of Scott Steiner in
07:49 2002 into 2003.
07:52 All it took was one bad match, maybe some other circumstances, but just a handful of
07:58 wrong decisions to not fulfill the pump of Big Papa Pump.
08:03 Steiner was never the type to feel sorry for himself, and after recovering from injuries
08:09 and surgeries, he made a great run in TNA, where he had a fruitful opportunity for four
08:15 years with wrestling greats like Kurt Angle, Kevin Nash, Booker T, and Sting, while also
08:22 going up against the likes of future greats like AJ Styles and Bobby Lashley.
08:27 The TNA run was huge for Steiner, because he managed to prove that he was far from being
08:33 a former WCW guy who couldn't cut it in WWE.
08:37 It was a second chance for him to prove that he was still a big time player.
08:42 As for his WWE legacy, he was specifically ignored and avoided for a long time, because
08:49 he was vocal about his disdain towards Triple H, who went on to become one of the most powerful
08:55 and most important people in all of WWE.
08:58 His rants about Triple H ruining his career, as well as targeting Stephanie McMahon of
09:04 all people, essentially meant that his name became a persona non grata in WWE ranks for
09:11 a long time.
09:12 In an interview with the Detroit Times, he said that after years of harboring resentment,
09:18 he finally got over it.
09:20 "You've got to let it go.
09:21 You can't harbor all the bad feelings.
09:24 You've got to grow up."
09:25 Rightfully so, he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in the class of 2022, along with
09:32 his brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers, with the fitting person welcomed into this
09:38 honor as Braun Breaker, Rick's son, the man carrying on the Steiner legacy within
09:43 the WWE ranks.
09:45 Steiner has never outright said it, but his nephew Braun Breaker, being a possible future
09:51 top star in WWE, may have had something to do with him maybe scaling back that negativity
09:59 towards WWE and its current top brass of leadership.
10:04 Either way, he's going to have to hope that Braun Breaker's career in WWE surpasses
10:08 his own.
10:09 And isn't that what anyone would want for the future generation of WWE superstars that
10:14 are carrying on their names?
10:16 That's just natural.
10:17 What did you think of Scott Steiner's run in WWE?
10:20 What was your favorite match or moment from it?
10:23 And maybe give us some of those Scott Steiner Big Papa Pump quotes in the comments below.
10:28 Holler if you hear me.